"Hook these 2 little kids up"

That is the phrase I heard over and over again from my nephew last night. It pays to have a kid who's popular in school. :)

Last night we went to Billy's high school for their safe trick or treat! It was nice. The kids either paid $2 or brought 6 canned goods(which we did) and they got to walk along 2 hallways of classrooms and trick or treat. Sophia wore her Dorothy costume and Connor wore his foorball player costume. Of course last night, he was "George". You see, on his costume is #7. One of the starters on the high school team, George, is #7. So as we're walking along with Billy he would say, "Hook these 2 little kids up. They are my cousins. He's dressed as George". And the girls would put handfuls of candy in their bags!! It was pretty funny until we got to where the real George was sitting!! He thought it was funny and I wish we had brought the camera so we could have taken their picture together. Of course, he gave them a handful of candy as well! LOL

After trick or treating in the hallways, they had a little haunted house that was 50 cents. So the 5 of us(billy, sophia, connor, wayne and i) went. Mom and Michelle stayed and guarded the candy and our coats. It was okay for a 50cent haunted house. LOL Sophia said she wasn't afraid of the monsters, but the dark. Silly girl. Connor didn't seemed phased either.

Oh and I can't end this without mentioning Billy's costume. Yes, he wore one. He had on a red ribbon bow on his head and 2 pieces of cardboard wrapped in Christmas paper. Each one hung on the front and back of him. There was a tag on each side that read, "God's Gift to Women"! Funny kid. :)

Sophia and Mommy

Sophia and I had a "date" today. It started with lunch at Applebees. We both ordered mini cheeseburgers. Hers was the kids meal. She had broccoli with hers, I had broccoli cheese soup. It sucked. But over all the meal was good. Then we had dessert shooters. Sophia had chocolate mousse. I had key lime pie. wish I had ordered the chocolate mousse too.

After lunch, we went to the movies. We saw High School Musical 3. It was really good! The best part? Being the only 2 people in the theatre watching it! Good call going while all the other kids were in school. (sophia doesn't go to school on tues and thurs in case you're wondering why she wasn't in school) As Sophia said after the movie. That was awesome!!

After the movie, we went to Starbucks. I got a cafe mocha, she got a kids hot chocolate. The lady who made ours was great. She gave Sophia hers and said it was at a drinkable temp because they like to keep the little ones lips intact. LOL I thought that was funny. Then we went to the mattress store to get an idea of how much Sophia's mattress set will cost us. Oh yeah and we went to the evil once upon a child. We bought books.

Then we came home. Made dinner. Carved out 2 of the 4 pumpkins. We'll do the other 2 tomorrow. Sophia didn't get to see hers when it was done because she had to go to bed. School tomorrow. :) I carved Ariel into hers. Tomorrow I think we're either doing Cinderella or the castle. We're not sure yet.

Tomorrow night we're going to the safe trick or treat!! That should be fun!

Getting ready for Halloween!

We took the kids for their halloween costumes today. Originally I had gone to Toys R Us in hopes of finding a cheap football helmet for Connor to wear with the costume we were going to make out of Billy's jersey. As we walked into the store I saw the costumes. Right there in front of me was a football player costume!! I couldn't believe! We had looked everywhere and here it was! I snatched it right up. It was only $10. Oh but wait!!! They had all the halloween stuff 40% off! So it was only $6!! Bonus! So I decided that since the costumes were on sale that Sophia could be Sharpay from HSM. Had the costume in the cart and we see the Dorothy from Wizard of Oz costume. She wanted that instead! I was shocked! For weeks now she's been asking to be Sharpay. Now she wants Dorothy??? Fine. Plus it was cheaper. Regularly $19.99...got it for $11.99 on sale! Woo! So I got both costumes for less than what I would have paid regular price for hers.

Wednesday night we're going to Billy's high school for their safe trick or treat. The kids pay $2 or bring 6 canned goods and get to trick or treat from class room to class room. A lot better than going from car to car for trunk or treat. At least they will be inside a warm building.

Friday we are going to Uncle Todd's neighborhood to T or T. I grew up on the street he lives on and we go there every year. I can't wait to take my little football player and Dorothy. :) Oh and Sophia has a little toy yorkie(no it's not real) that is going to be Toto. :) She takes that thing EVERYWHERE. Aunt Michelle got it for her birthday. She named it Princess and we even bought a pink and rhinestone collar for it. She sleeps with it every night too. :) If only we could have a real one. maybe when she's older.

Looking forward to halloween but at the same time, I'm ready for it to be over.

Field Trip!

Today was Sophia's class field trip! We went to the pumpkin patch! Even Connor and Daddy got to go.

It was a lot of fun. When we first got there, they split the class in half. So half went to the petting zoo and the other half went to the bouncehouse. It was shaped like a pumpkin. They were all in the same area, just divided by the fence. I got lots of pics of the kids feeding the goats and some of the kid in the bounce "pumpkin". After that, we took a hayride to the pumpkin patch. Wayne managed to NOT fall off this time! It was fun. All 4 of us got a pumpkin. Good times had by all. Now we're home and the kids and Wayne are playing in the backyard. I'm uploading pics from today and then getting my coffee and heading outside as well!! :)

I'll be back later with pics. I even got one of Sophia's "boyfriend", Noah. :)

Whole lotta nothing.

So the kids party went really well! They got a lot of nice gifts. I've actually managed to keep them from opening ALL of them at once. just most of them lol. Everyone seemed to have a good time. The mommy was exhausted, but that's okay.

Today the kids had their annual check ups. We saw a new doctor today. Same practice, different doctor. Loved him! He was soo nice and was awesome with the kids. My only concern is that he's older than I expected so I hope he doesn't retire anytime soon. I hate finding a doctor I like and then they move or retire. The thing I liked best is that he is okay with me delaying Sophia's MMR and chicken pox vax until next year. Both kids did get flu shots today. The nurse who did them was AWESOME! She was so fast and neither kid even made a peep. Sophia only got mad because she told her to turn her and well, Sophia likes to watch! So she was mad that she couldnt watch. Weird kid. but she got to watch Connor get his so that made it okay i guess.

So as the title says, whole lotta nothing going on. The rest of the week I have nothing planned but chiro appts. Friday night is the big football game for the boys. Send positive game winning vibes to them. This is a really HUGE game and I really hope they win. Saturday we are going to a cookout and Sunday I'm not sure yet. All depends on if Kim goes to the game on Friday.

oh...one other piece of news. My mom and dad had a friend of theirs ask if they knew anyone who needed a twin bed. Mom called and asked if we wanted it. I said yes!!! So now Connor will have a twin bed and Sophia will have a full bed. The twin has a mattress they are including. We will get Sophia's mattress and boxspring when we get our tax refund. No more baby beds!!!! wow.

Happy Birthday Connor!!

Happy Birthday to my sweet baby boy!! Today he turns 2 yrs old!! Where has the time gone?

Nothing too exciting planned for his bday. Saturday is their party so just like Sophia, we're not really doing anything today. Maybe we'll get McDonalds or something like we did on Sophia's birthday.

It's hard to believe it's been 2 yrs since I gave birth to that sweet little boy. I just hope he keeps his sweet, laid back temperament and doesn't go all monster toddler on me! lol

And now for pics!!

Connor at 1 day old


Connor at 2 yrs old!

What a day!

So today we went to Buckley Homestead for their fall festival! It's a living history farm where people dress in late 1700's- early 1800's attire and all the stuff that goes with it. It's really neat. We all had fun...well after Wayne's little mishap on the hay ride that scared the crap out of Sophia and I.

So we get our tickets for the hayride and head over to the wagon. Connor is excited because it's being pulled by a tractor, Sophia's just excited to be on a hayride. So we're the last ones on. The driver starts to go and the girl who takes the tickets notices that the steps to get onto the wagon are hung up on the side of the wagon. Wayne, being the nice guy he is, gets up to help her unhook them. In the meantime, she tells the driver to stop. When he does, the wagon lurches and sends Wayne over the front of wagon, headfirst. Some how he managed to miss the wheels of the wagon and came out the other side. Scary. He only has a bruise under his thumbnail and his hand is a litle sore. Another few inches either way and he would have been seriously hurt. I don't even want to think what would have happened if he had been ran over by the wheels. :( Sophia freaked out and started crying. I was close to tears. Connor had no idea what was going on as he was facing the opposite way!! Everyone on the wagon was very concerned that he was hurt bad, but when he came up laughing, we all breathed a sigh of relief. The tractor driver was shook up pretty bad. He didn't hear us yelling for him to stop after Wayne fell off (he had kept going for some reason after stopping the first time).

So after that, everything was fine and we enjoyed the day. It didn't even matter that it started a light mist of rain at one point. Sophia had a blast! She got to make a piece of rope, dip a candle and "wash" clothes on an old fashioned washboard and ringer. Then her and Connor got to paint a picture at the old school house. We had fun.

I wish we could have stayed later but Wayne had to work today so we headed home. Connor was asleep I think before we left the parking lot. He was wiped out.

They have another big thing in December for Christmas and I hope we can go to that!! Shouldn't be bad if we dress warm. :)

The Boys' Write in Today's paper!

Ballentine runs Warriors to win over Whiting

By HILLARY SMITH
hsmith@nwitimes.com
219.933.3233 | Saturday, October 04, 2008 | No comments posted.

CALUMET TWP. | Darcell Ballentine told his fullback to make a hole just big enough for the 6-foot, 190-pound running back to slip through.

"I told my fullback if he opened up the hole, I'd keep my feet moving," Ballentine said.

His feet, and the football, found the end zone, good enough for a two-point conversion, the difference in Calumet's 14-13 win over Whiting in Greater South Shore Conference play on Friday night.

Ballentine also picked up the Times No. 8 Warriors' other two big offensive plays -- a 43-yard touchdown run and a 36-yard scamper to set up Calumet's second score.

"He's a powerful runner, he's an elusive runner and he wanted the football," Calumet coach Ivan Zimmer said. "You could just tell the determination in his body posture and he's a tremendous runner."

Calumet had lost seven straight in the series and been outscored 292-56 in those losses, but a late turnover helped stop the streak.

Nate Fowler, the Warriors' quarterback who doubles as a linebacker, recovered a Whiting fumble with 1:40 remaining in the game to set up Ballentine's long run to the 1-yard line. Fowler then plunged into the end zone to make the score 13-12.

"After we got that fumble, I knew I had to make a run for it," Ballentine said. "I told my line to step it up and I put my faith in my line."

Whiting's defense held the Warriors (6-1, 5-0) to seven first downs and 143 yards overall, and kept top Calumet threat George Ezell to minus-27 yards rushing.

"Calumet's been noted for big plays," Whiting coach Jeff Cain said. "These guys you're not going to stop, you're going to hopefully contain them. ... I thought our guys did a good job. If you had told me we were going to give up 14 points, I'd have been a happy guy."

Prior to the last 1:40, the Oilers (5-2, 4-2) had dominated the game offensively. With 136 yards from quarterback Dan Macon in the air and another 57 on the ground, Whiting picked up 16 first downs. Alex Leddesma led the Oilers' ground game with 76 yards and a touchdown.

Whiting scored its last touchdown on a 1-yard Leddesma run at 7:23 of the third quarter, but Ezell blocked the extra-point kick.

No. 8 Calumet 14, Whiting 13
Darcell Ballentine plunged into the end zone for the winning two-point conversion with 32 seconds left.

More potty training goodness!

Connor used the potty again this morning! He was laying in bed with us and he said he had to go potty. So Wayne took him in the bathroom, put him on the potty chair and before he could tuck his peepee in, Connor peed a little on the floor. Wayne managed to get him pointed in the right direction(lol) and he went on the potty instead of the floor!! YAY!!! I'm so proud of him. He's definitely doing better than Sophia at this age which is awesome!!!

Woot!! Warriors Win!!

After trailing by 7 with less than a minute left in the game, the Calumet Warriors pulled it out in the end. Final score - 14-13!!! Woohoo! It was an awesome game. What made it even more exciting is that this is the first time they have beat Whiting since 2000!!! I'm soooo happy for the boys!!

Go Warriors!!

Here's an article about Billy's football team helping out the flood victims. The bolded Red parts are about Billy. Dykhuizen is Billy's best friend, Matt.

Calumet players help out without being asked

BY STEVE HANLON
shanlon@nwitimes.com
219.933.4198 | Friday, October 03, 2008 | No comments posted.

Homes, tears and lives were floating down the street in the aftermath of the destructive storms that hammered the Region a few weeks ago. Northern neighborhoods in Munster were under water. Families nervously looked to the sky to see if the sun was ever going to shine again.

Around noon on the post-storm Monday, seven Calumet football players arrived to move sandbags and help in any way they could. This compassionate outreach touched many who saw it.

The players -- Darcell Ballentine, Chuck Carter, Billy Doup, Matt Dykhuizen, George Ezell, Tyler Vanlul and Montrez Wade -- went there on their own. Coach Ivan Zimmer never called them or persuaded them to volunteer.

"Here we have kids who don't have much and they went into an affluent community because those people needed help," Zimmer said. "It almost made the old man cry. I was very happy, pleased and proud of my kids."

For seven hours the Warriors lifted sandbags and put them down, in different areas. Doup was at the staging area, where he said he lifted and moved about 8,000 bags of sand onto payloaders, which were taken to neighborhoods under duress. The bags weighed between 25 and 100 pounds each.

"It was a good workout," Doup joked. "Hey, those people needed help, so what else could we do?"

Zimmer, in his 25th year as a varsity coach, said he preaches "right and wrong" to his players every day. For example, one of his players came into the office to call home for a ride. He said, "Hey, pick me up." Zimmer pointed out that the proper exclamation was, "Please, could you come and pick me up. Thank you."

Being on time is paramount to the program. Zimmer's saying -- "If you're early you're on time. If you're on time then you're late and if you're late, you're fired" -- has been tested this year and he's backed it up. Five players missed the first half of the North Newton game because of tardiness.

"Kids have to know that they're held to a standard," he said.

Last Saturday the Warriors washed cars for a fundraiser for eight hours. This week, with the homecoming game against Whiting coming and the team set to ride on fire trucks in the parade, the players went to the Lake Ridge Fire Department and washed and waxed two trucks.

"It's sort of a higher calling," Zimmer said. "In today's world rules were made to be broken. Look at the music and movies and videos. But we're trying to teach kids that even if you don't get caught you've got to know that you did something wrong. Life is a lot simpler when you do the right things."

That's what drove the Warriors to Munster. Dykhuizen spent most of his day in waist-deep floodwater. Still, he picked up the bags and put them down.

"I just thought it was the right thing to do," Dykhuizen said. "Coach is always trying to teach character and I guess it's working. The people were very thankful. A lady named Karen gave us food and something to drink and was nice enough to give us hugs. That meant a lot."

He did it!!!

Connor went poopy on the potty!!!!

I can't believe it!!! I was in the kitchen making dinner and he was in there "helping" me. I turned and he had that look on his face. You know the one. The "okay I gotta poop really bad" look.

Me: Connor, do you have to poop?
Connor: go poopoo
Me: okay go to the potty.
C: Go potty

He then runs to the potty, is trying to open the door before I get there. I take off his pull up, put him on the toilet and VOILA!!!! Poopy in the potty!! I'm so amazed! Yesterday I put him on the potty after he said he had to go pee. Sure enough he went pee, but he forgot to keep his peepee(happy now aunt kimi?) pointing in the toilet, so he went on the floor. That's okay. At least he was in the bathroom and not on the carpet.

So after I get him off the toilet and wipe him, he runs to get a diaper. He refused to let me put it on him. He had to do it himself!!! Of course then he was getting frustrated because he couldn't get his foot in it. So I had to help him a little bit with his feet getting in the holes.

All this before he's even 2!!!! I plan on really working with him. If I can get him even somewhat trained by Christmas, I will be a happy mom!!! I see batman underwear in my future. No not for me!!

wow. just wow.

Sophia loves her Uncle Don

So I was going through some pictures today and came across 2 pics of Sophia and my brother, Don. The first is from my sister, Kim's wedding 3 yrs ago. The 2nd is from Jen's wedding on Saturday! wow what a difference 3 yrs can make!!!!

That stubborn streak is gonna be the death of me!

The day went pretty well! I'm so proud of myself because I did NOT cry at all! :) I made her breakfast and got her favorite(mcdonalds) for lunch. In the evening we went to my mom's for dinner and a mini party for Sophia. My stepsister and her family was in town from CA so we went and got cupcakes and celebrated Soph's bday with them. :) All in all it was a good day. :)

Today however, started out as a bad day. I got a call about 9:45 from her teacher. Sophia was being stubborn and didn't want to do her worksheet. So Mrs E. put her at a table by herself away from the other kids. So her teacher called for input. Was wondering how I handled things like this at home. I said well, I do what you are doing now and if that doesn't work, I take things away. She said so you're okay with me removing her from the rest of the class. I said, Mrs. E. It is YOUR classroom. You do what you need to in order for her to listen and cooperate. What ever you decide I will support that decision. So she says to me. Well she's a stubborn girl, but I'm sure that's what helped her when she was in the hospital as a baby. :) Great teacher to remember something that was told to her last school year. :)

The funny thing is that I had a friend warn me that this teacher was bitchy and tried to convince me to put Sophia in a different preschool because of the teacher. I said no, she's going there. I have never had any problems with this teacher. She taught the 3yr old class last year for a short time while Mrs Amy was out after surgery. I think she's nice. She didn't have to call me this morning about the situation, but she did and I appreciate it. :)

8 days til my baby boy turns 2. I can't believe it. Where has the time gone. It seems like yesterday I was getting ready to give birth and now he's almost 2 and potty training!! Yep, he's started showing an interest so I ran with it! Today he told me he had to go peepee, took off his diaper and headed for the bathroom. I helped him on the toilet, went to answer the phone and I hear Sophia yelling that Connor went pee on the floor!! LOL Sure enough. He had gone on the floor but he was still sitting on the toilet. He just forgot to hold his penis down. But hey, he went in the bathroom and not in his diaper!! :) It's a step in the right direction. How cool would it be if he was PT by Christmas!!!

Okay, I'm gonna take my stuffy/runny nose and go read for a bit. I'll post more about Connor tomorrow. i hope.